Breathtaking, in So Many Ways
by akurosa
Summary: It's not only beauty that can take your breath away. The Straw Hat crew members learn this when they find the injured Zoro-and watch Luffy approach his injured first mate. Zoro and Luffy nakamaship. Set during the Thriller Bark arc.
1. Nami

_Yesterday was what we Koreans call 'Seol-nal' a day we celebrate the New Year. To celebrate the year of the Rabbit I've started a new series. __It will be about the each crew member's responses after they found Zoro in chapter 458, but it will be Zoro-Luffy centric(non-slash) and major angst(yippee) before there's any fluff. If you've read my other fics you'll know that my writing can be vague and any questions concerning them are always welcomed. I'll start from Nami and probably go through all the crew members except Zoro and Luffy._

**Nami **

When Nami hears Sanji's urgent shouts, she rushes towards it in fear for whatever it is that has alarmed her crew mate into frantic gibbering for Chopper. When she sees the bloody figure, the image itself is so horrifying, so scary, so _wrong _that she freezes in her tracks and flinches away though she hasn't yet fully understood. When Nami understands and realizes who it is, her hands fly to her mouth but not fast enough and a strangled cry escapes. However, she doesn't stop to weep, pushes her feelings, her fear and her worries behind and whips around, with only one word on her mind.

_Luffy._

She can't let Luffy see this, she can't let Luffy see Zoro like this. Nami screams to anybody to grab Luffy, to stop Luffy, to save Luffy, but her warnings are drowned in the confused shouts of others.

Her attempt is in vain as she is too late. Luffy, who was drawn to Sanji's shouts like Nami, is staring at the scene. The plains are now a rush of confused movement, half trying to find the enemy that could have hurt their friend this badly, and the other half screaming for the doctor. Yet Luffy stands out ghostly from the rest because in contrast to the others he is the only immobile and silent being among all of them. He is frozen, his mind struggling to grasp the overwhelming gravity of the moment and then suddenly-as if he knew she was watching him-Luffy turns and his stricken eyes met Nami's.

And Nami doubles over, finally letting out a sob but she doesn't know if it's for the swordsman or her captain, because she can't tell who's hurting more.


	2. Usopp

_Yes…. I am living proof that such helpful and kind and long reviews make the writer write faster… When you're done with this chapter, please remember this doesn't have a plot so it doesn't mean the last line is true more like what Usopp(and probably every crew mate) might have thought considering the dire circumstances. _

**Usopp**

"Luffy!" Usopp is the first to realize the raven head teen is swaying dangerously, and he rushes forward to steady him. He slips an arm under his friend's shoulder and pulls him, and then lets the teen go almost instantly when Luffy swings his arm up. The blow misses widely and Usopp doubts it was even meant to hit but it is vicious all the same. "Luffy…"

Usopp doesn't take the aggression at heart, not when Zoro is a bloodied mess and Luffy has seen this. However Usopp is confused because the swing Luffy took at him was stiff, terse, and unnatural unlike the Luffy he knows-and then Usopp realizes with a heart wrenching twist that that is exactly the problem. This isn't the Luffy he knows.

He has seen Luffy angry often enough-the anger having been directed at him not too long ago-and so Usopp recognizes the signs of disaster. He knows the way Luffy grits his teeth, furrows his brows and Usopp knows how sometimes Luffy's fist moves first. He has seen Luffy in grief as well. Usopp knows the way Luffy's shoulders will shudder as he sobs or how Luffy will pull the brim of his hat down to hide his tears.

He can't see any of that right now.

He doesn't know what to make of the visible slack in every line of Luffy's features or the utter loss(_or is it fear?_)in the brown eyes.

Yet Usopp raises his hands, palms open as he steps back out of Luffy's path because though Usopp can't begin to describe what his captain is feeling, he knows what caused it.

Pirate Hunter Roronora Zoro, their stubborn swordsman, was dying.


	3. Sanji

_WARNING : This is Zoro and Luffy centric but that doesn't mean Luffy-Zoro's relationship is better than Zoro-Sanji's, only that even in the same circumstances, each manifest in their unique way. Thanks so much to Dorry and sadT.T and Germangirl for reviewing chapter one and sadTTfor reviewing chapter two! If you ever review without logging in please leave a name behind so I can thank you :) Next will be Robin._

**Sanji**

"Zoro," Sanji hates his voice that cracks on those two simple syllables. He hates the tremor in his finger tips as much as he hates the swordsman who, despite having answered Sanji's question barely a minute ago, has suddenly fallen silent. "Zoro, say something!"

And Sanji reaches out to grasp his friend's shoulder only to draw back in surprise when Zoro flinches. A wave of panic leaves him wondering wildly if he had hurt the swordsman without even touching him. Then Sanji notices the deadly gleam in his friend's eyes. The blond headed pirate realizes the meaning behind the flinch and takes several steps back with his hands held up high.

"Relax. I'm not trying to hurt you. I'm trying to help."

Yet in Zoro's pain muddled, fatigue ridden mind, there is no difference. There is no difference between the movement of a friend who is trying to pull him to a doctor and the movement of an enemy who is grabbing his arm to break it. The differences are unrecognizable for Zoro whose mind has given up executing all complex and detailed actions to achieve one simpler goal; surviving. And so, for the man who is functioning on a primitive level, the world is simplified into two groups; 'threats' and 'non-threats'.

And by the sudden dangerous, almost feral light in the weary steel eyes when Sanji gets too close, it is not hard figuring which side the cook is classified in.

"You afraid I'll hurt you? Damn well better be. I'll kill you myself when you get better," Sanji growls but to himself as he waves Chopper and the rest of the crew members off. As much as Zoro needs immediate medical attention, anybody approaching would only provoke the half insane swordsman and even without his swords Zoro could cause grievous damage-to himself.

But Sanji isn't the least surprised when one crew member ignores his cautions and proceeds on. Sanji isn't the man to hesitate to use force against that particular member, but he takes one look at his captain and can't find it in him to stop Luffy. As much as he owes Zoro his silence, he owes Luffy this moment. So Sanji simply watches, careful not to move from where he is, close enough to subdue Zoro when he thrashes about towards this new threat.

However, Sanji realizes he should have known better; neither slowly nor carefully but in that straightfoward way Luffy has, the red vested teen steps right into Zoro's personal space and the only response Luffy's first mate gives is to lean foward-as if he'd been waiting for his captain all along.


	4. Robin

_Next is Chopper(the chapters aren't in the order the members joined the crew, thanks to VampireApple for pointing that out!). Much thanks to Dorry(what do you mean nightmares!) for reviewing! _

**Robin**

Robin has seen war. She has seen massacres and the annihilation of entire islands, sometimes having been the reason for it. She has witnessed the ruins of battle and the broken bodies of innocent children. Her heart, having lived through one nightmare after another, is hardened. It takes more than blood and gore to make the archeologist turn away.

But when the proud swordsman bows his head to rest it against his friend's shoulder, and the extrovert captain instantly still to give what little comfort he can offer, Robin turns away.


	5. Chopper

_Thanks to Dorry for reviewing again! Next up will be Franky who I'm struggling with.. Will someone be kind enough to explain his i-i-kata(his unique habits when speaking)? Thanks in advance. Oh and I've been told that the end of Chapter 3(Sanji) felt shippy but I'm hoping Luffy's reaction to that particular movement in this chapter will lessen the shippiness. I believe Luffy and Zoro are capable of physical contact in a non-romantic but family kind of way. Anyways, this chapter is based on my assumption that since Luffy didn't have any physical injuries when he woke up, Zoro took them._

**Chopper**

"Zoro!"

Chopper gasps the swordsman's name when Zoro's legs give out and the swordsman instantly crumbles. Yet Luffy doesn't let his first mate fall and with uncharacteristic slowness, helps Zoro to the ground. The process stains Luffy with dark blood that stand out against his pale features making Luffy a sad mirror image of their swordsman. The captain is kneeled beside his unconscious friend, both hands curled into tight fists when he speaks for the first time.

"Save him Chopper."

It is an order and a plea but somehow, between the sharp intakes, it sounds like a prayer as well.

And the friend in Chopper wants to answer, _don't worry _or _He'll be fine _but the words are trapped in his throat and the doctor in him refuses to let them go. His silence now may hurt his captain but false hope will leave deeper scars when they lose Zoro.

_If_they lose Zoro of course, Chopper hastily chastises himself silently.

Chopper, with his medical bag he retrieved from Thousand Sunny, approaches his friends quickly. Zoro has lost time and the already slim chances of recovery are becoming impossibly slimmer.

The doctor skillfully checks his friend's head(_several bumps, most likely leading to a concussion though how severe is yet unknown, a gash narrowly missing the ear, and a bruised jaw) _and when he's satisfied, Chopper begins with cutting Zoro's tattered clothes off; the environment is anything but hygiene friendly but Chopper won't risk moving Zoro if doing so would hurt his friend more. So he first starts with probing Zoro's ribs(_left second and fourth cracked, right third and forth broken but without hint of displacement, thank heavens_) and moves on up(_right collar bone fractured, left seems fine but two and a half inch long wound that ends just below the left collar bone is deep and will need several stitches)._ Then he moves to Zoro's right shoulder(_dislocated) _down to the elbow(_scrapes and cuts but minor) _and glances at Zoro's hands(_heavily bruised, several phalanges of the hand broken, first and second knuckle bone broken as well)-_and that's when Chopper puases.

Chopper stares at the tattered hand in confusion; how does a swordsman, who wields swords in both hands as weapons, break his_ knuckle _bone?

This isn't a common injury for Zoro. In fact, Chopper can't remember the last time Zoro had hurt his hands this severely. This is something that never happens to Sanji, sometimes happens to Usopp, and should always happen to-

And it is an impossible theory, completely absurd that goes against all of Chopper's medical knowledge yet the doctor pushes the pieces in place; a swordsman who has wounds he shouldn't have, and a captain who lacks the wound he should have. His surrogate father Hiluluk would frown in disbelief and Dr. Kureha would clobber him in the head for his unscientific and irrational conclusion but Chopper knows he is correct. Like how Chopper knows the sky is blue and the grass is green and his crew mates are the greatest, Chopper just _knows. _

In his astonishment and panic, Chopper's head snaps but for the second time that day the words(_Luffy! Zoro's wounds are yours!)_never make it out. The reindeer swallows the cry at what he sees because he is reminded that how and why Zoro got into this state are no longer important. The only thing that matters is now.

And right now a dry eyed Luffy stares back at him and the burden on Chopper's shoulders double when the doctor remembers that it's not just one life in his hands. That if he can't save Zoro, their captain will never be the same.


	6. Franky

_I am so sorry for the delay I have nothing to say in my defense except that I honestly wrote this chapter at least thirty times. This chapter would never have made it here if it weren't for RedVoidentDragon, Robotinthe Room, GhostoftheMoonlight, Juzsomeone, and VampireApple for giving me tips on Franky's characterization! Thank you! And like always, thanks to GermanGirl for reviewing(not once but twice! Sorry for the late update)! And thanks to loveikuto1996 for reminding me to start writing again._

_Enjoy._

**Franky **

In the Straw Hat crew, Franky is the 'youngest' in terms of seniority, and he is well aware of that. He may know Thousand Sunny inside out, but he can't yet be so sure about his crew mates. Still, he doesn't resent the fact that there are memories he doesn't have and moments that just aren't his. Franky doesn't mind because he knows what _used to_ be isn't as important as what _will_ be and he's a fast learner anyways so cutting through the crap(_the jokes and crazy laughter and what sometimes seems like pure stupidity_) and figuring out what matters(_their tears and dreams and the glances of their fears they will allow only their friends to see_) isn't hard to him, not in the way outsiders find it.

But then again, Franky thinks as he gently lays Zoro down on the makeshift four wheeler cart he's made, outsiders don't see what he sees and he sees what outsiders will never see because(_and despite everything right now, Franky can't help it when his heart swells with pride, joy, and love at this thought_) he is no outsider. Not anymore.

So Moria's ex-crew members may only see Luffy walk away from his grievously injured first mate to complain to his cook that they don't have any meat and fresh beer, and they might tsk-tsk in disapproval. The thing is, they didn't see what Franky saw; the way Luffy had tensed when the cyborg reached towards Zoro to move him. They didn't see the look Luffy gave, a gaze in which there was no usual playfulness and mischievousness, but only steel, rigid and almost cold seriousness as Luffy wordlessly questioned Franky(_can you do it without hurting him?)_, reminded Franky(_he's Zoro)_, and warned Franky(_he's __**Zoro**)_.

And apart from being able to see this, Franky's a fast learner and though he's still learning to cut through the crap and figure out what matters, he knows he's getting the hang of it when he remembers; Luffy never was a big fan for beer.


	7. Brooke

_Warning : Brooke has a few OOC touches but he's a musician so I think hearing more is perfectly possible-and he's still new to the crew. Brooke doesn't become a nakama till after the first night so this chapter is set after then, though you'll realize that soon enough. Thanks to Germangirl for reviewing(Thanks for pointing out which parts you liked, I'm a sucker for such compliments!) and thanks to GhostoftheMoonlight for the insight on Brooke! Oh and music isn't my strong point so please excuse any mistakes or confusion, and those who read 'Moments Like This' will recognize the reference to chapter 6 Observation and Suspicion. It won't matter even if you didn't. This is my last chapter for this series… unless anybody wants Zoro's POV next? And yes, I am baiting you._

Brooke is a musician and he hears tunes that linger in the air though nobody but himself notices. The tunes themselves are harmless yet the stories they tell violate the simple privacy everybody should be entitled to and so Brooke tries hard to turn a deaf ear(though he doesn't have an ear at all-skull joke!).

Thus, on the first night after they found Roronora Zoro, deep into the night at a time meant to be filled with snores and dreams, Brooke tried hard not to listen to the low murmuring_(the unhappiness and pain started a somber tune that hurt just by listening)-_from his new captain. He also tried not to hear the shoes tapping against the cement floor(_the high and quick notes of hoping_) as the cook made his way to his two friends before coming to an abrupt stop(_and disappointment was screaming its heavy scores at Brooke)_. The skeleton couldn't hear the conversation nor did he intend to but the vibes in the air were just too obvious to miss(_the sounds of one's confusion and the other's fury clashing before coming to a sad acceptance for both_).

But sometimes there were times Brooke just couldn't help it like on the second night when he was awoken by the frantic shouts(_several tunes that were being played far too quickly, far too ominous for Brooke's taste) _and was on his feet in half a second to find Roronora Zoro in a fevered frenzy. The swordsman's eyes shone too brightly in the dim light and he wasn't the bit coherent(_the flats and sharps ring in places they shouldn't ring)_ as he flinched away from his friends' soothing murmurs, flinched away so harshly that they were able to hear the sound of bandages tearing and Chopper's distress intensify_(the shrill single high note hurt Brooke's ears). _It wasn't until the number of hands pushing the swordsman down were reduced to one and it was just his captain's hand on his heart, gently pushing him down and whispering something, that the swordsman relaxed and gave in(_but what worried Brooke was that the green headed pirate's unique tune didn't slow, rather it came to a dead stop as if, as if-no, never)._

Other times, like now, Brooke could help it but didn't want to.

"Luffy-san," Brooke calls carefully, knowing he is treading on dangerous grounds but still willing to try because surely the captain deserves to know at least part of the truth. The pirate hunter is awake and though he isn't in hearing distance Brooke isn't going to take chances; the skeleton continues slowly and softly. "Zoro-san cares for you. Alot."

Luffy is looking only half interested-after all Brooke is telling him what everybody on the ship already knows-when Brooke points out.

"Enough to die for you."

And Brooke is listening hard but Luffy never answers and Brooke listens harder but thankfully he doesn't hear any distress or confusion and the musician knows he hasn't pushed one step too far and the captain hasn't put two to two together and realized the underlying meaning, something which the swordsman will never forgive.

Luffy is simply looking at his first mate who is still being fussed about from their doctor and though Luffy never makes a sound or even hints in the slightest, Zoro automatically looks up with a grin to answer his captains'. They are locked in a gaze for the merest second before both turn away at the same time. Luffy turns to his newest nakama with a grin reaches his ears.

"He's stronger than that Brooke," The joy and faith brimming from each word is real, just as real as the promise Brooke has made to Laboon. Luffy explains. "He'd live for me."

And Brooke listens to the song of the the two friend's souls-_open and innocent devotion, friendship, and understanding all in perfect harmony_-and hums along, content.


	8. Zoro

_THANKS SO MUCH TO Scioneeris! Without your advice I wouldn't have been able to upload this.  
I wanted to explain the gap between 'Observations and Suspicions' and the previous chapter, because in 'Observations and Suspicions' Zoro was so obviously set to die yet in the previous chapter Luffy told Brooke Zoro would live for him. So this is about how Luffy was right. Thanks for waiting! Thanks to _xKoKorox, divz, rebecca Taylor, Ghost of the moonlight _for reviewing. I hope to hear from you again! This is officially the last chapter of 'Breathtaking in So Many Ways'. _

_Enjoy!_

Roronora Zoro is going to die.

It isn't some strange fate or the devil's work. It's his own decision, his own choice that he'd make a thousand times and over if he has to. As far as Zoro is concerned, if there must be an ending that ends with bloodshed, it will be his, not Luffy's.

Luffy _will_ become the Pirate King, he _will _utter the claim for the whole world to hear and all of Grand Line to see, and the rest of the world _will _hail. It is the way things must go, like how the sun must shine and the rain must stop and so Zoro doesn't resent how things turned out. He has no last words(_except the wordless apology to his captain)_ no regrets(_except the fact that when Luffy declares himself king there will be pain and guilt laced in the words that will go unknown by anybody and everybody for the one whose supposed to notice will be the one to put it there_), no second thoughts(_though Zoro knows he is doing the single thing Luffy could never forgive him for_).

The lean swordsman takes a deep breath and looks at Bartholomew Kuma, indicating that this is the location he chooses, the place where he is sure his screams won't haunt his friends' dreams.

Kuma places the embodiment of Monkey D. Luffy's pain before the swordsman. Never has Kuma seen such certainty and resolve in a man who has chosen death, and he tells the swordsman, giving him the closest thing to comfort he can offer.

"You couldn't have protected him forever."

(_But you're protecting him now and even once is admirable, and something only a handful of men would choose, so this once is enough)_

Zoro looks at his enemy with that serious and careful gaze he has, before turning to the direction his friends and captain are.

_Forever_. Zoro tastes the word with unfamiliar unfamiliarity in his mouth. Forever is how long the world will remember his captain. Forever is how long Luffy's name will be uttered with awe, Luffy's name and Luffy's name _alone _because Zoro will die now and he will never become the world's greatest swordsman nor the Pirate King's first mate.

Forever.

_Forever._

And that single word is searing pain, sharpening his exhausted mind to absolute clearness and suddenly there is bright white light and Zoro can see.

He is a broken shadow, standing over his own corpse. He watches Sanji(_the idiot)_ find him and the others follows the sound of his yells with their weapons drawn and senses alert but they find that there is no danger, only the remains of what had been. And Sanji catches Nami before she falls and though the cook is shaking just as much Zoro knows that he'll hold himself together for everybody. Everybody including Usopp who has begun to throw up the moment he set his eyes on the lifeless limbs and Franky who is for once, silent, shock and disbelief having taken his words away. Robin looks at the body and there is ancient grief and simmering fury, but she blinks and it is gone. Instead Robin looks at Luffy who is looking at Chopper. Asking, Pleading, Begging. And Chopper chokes out-

"_He's gone."_

-and that is when Luffy drops to his knees, before his dead first mate. And Zoro sees Luffy's face clearly, and there is disbelief, and rage and sorrow and grief, but there is more. The others will never notice it, and Luffy himself won't understand but it is there and Zoro knows.

Fear.

Because Zoro is dead, gone.

Undeniable, sheer terror.

Because now he is alone.

Forever.

"No," Zoro snarls, but he is not agreeing with Bartholomew. The swordsman's steel eyes harden again with resolve, but of a different kind.

He cannot die. He simply, _cannot die_.

He will take Luffy's pain and according to Kuma, that will be enough to kill him. But it won't be, because dying would mean breaking a promise far older than any he'd made with Kuma.

So Roronora Zoro straightens, standing tall and proud with a well accustomed dignity some men never achieve during their whole lifetime. There is no hope in his eyes, because hope is wishful thinking for the impossible, about wanting something you secretly know would never happen. No, there is something stronger than hope in the pirate hunter's eyes, something that burns brighter in his soul, something that has the certainty hope lacks.

Kuma looks at the swordsman and instinctively feels this, that Roronora Zoro is no longer a man set to die-but maybe, just maybe, it is just his own wishful thinking. Kuma wants to be sure. He has to be sure_(He has no time)._ So he warns, challenges, and taunts the pirate.

"You can't protect him forever."

Monkey D. Luffy's first mate doesn't disappoint. The pirate answers with a grin, not just to Kuma but to the government he represents and it is a taunt, a challenge and a spine chilling warning-

"Watch me try."

_-_that once is never enough.


End file.
